The One and Only Time
by titangirl161
Summary: based off the short where Goku thinks about what summer is. The Monks think about the young Monkey King who came to stay with them and his effect on the High Priest who raised him. Introspective one-shot.


Friends and haters, I am back! This time, it's another Saiyuki fic! YAY! This one has been sitting in my head for a while, but I has been so lazy this summer I barely wrote at all…or if I did, it was physics notes for my summer class. -_- But now I'm getting it done, so let's get this thing started! This is based off the omake chapter where Goku thinks about summer and what it means. My puppy-muse Scribble will do the disclaimer, then we will begin!

Scribble: We do not own Saiyuki. WE WANT TO SEE MORE OF THIS NEW SANZO! NOW!

All hail queen of the betas, What2callmyself? !

One and Only Time

So after Goku rampaged through the temple in his Seiten Taisei state and Sanzo subdued him, when Sanzo announced that Goku would be living at the temple with them from then onward, all the monks thought he was crazy.

After all, when something tries to kill you, the last thing you want is for that thing to be living with you. Being in mortal terror for your life does not make it easy for you to warm up to something very quickly. So for the first few months of Goku living there, the monks all walked on eggshells, afraid that Goku would snap again and once more try to kill them all. Sure, Sanzo had explained the whole thing about the diadem and as long as it was in place, Goku wouldn't hurt a fly (unless it was an attacking demon fly), but that did little to ease their fears.

After the fear wore off, looking after Goku became more of a chore than anything else. The kid was messy, undisciplined, did whatever he wanted, regardless of the fact there were rules, and not to mention he ate EVERYTHING IN SIGHT. EVERYTHING. And that MEANT everything. This included meats as well, which is forbidden in the Buddhist religion. And so the monks were regularly chasing after him, lecturing him on what he could and could not do, or, if Goku was being especially stubborn, would run off to Sanzo to inform him just what the Monkey King was doing this time. At which point Sanzo would sigh and go off to put an end to it.

The monks often wondered, aloud (and very loudly) what Sanzo had been thinking, taking in a creature such as Goku. This boy was as far from Buddha as one could get. So how could he, who seemed to have almost no interest in the religion at all, and even less interest in following its teachings and becoming a monk, possibly stay here? It made no sense to some monks, who often grumbled about Sanzo's choices in companions…if this boy could even be called that. But even while saying it loud enough for Goku to hear, he continued to stay there, because Sanzo had never said he couldn't. And if they ever said it loud enough for Sanzo himself to hear it, they would be promptly treated with a Sanzo death glare and told to shut up, because what Sanzo chose to pick up was his own business and had nothing to do with them. So, being unable to argue or drive him away, they could only resort to loudly grumbling.

But some monks had to know it was no picnic for Sanzo either. He was the one always sent to clean up the messes the boy made, when he made them. When Goku didn't listen to the discipline of the monks, Sanzo would be sent in to smack the kid with his fan…it seemed his correction was the only kind Goku would tolerate. And weirdly, at the same time, he tried to keep the other monks away from Goku, as if he wanted Goku to only be influenced by him. When Goku had drawn all over his paperwork, a furious Sanzo had chased him down himself to yell at him for ruining the papers, and while other monks had suggested punishments, Sanzo told them all off, saying he would take care of it. It seemed only Sanzo could put up with this creature…almost like he was the Buddha himself. Surely, these monks reasoned, that was why he could do it, he had all the patience of Buddha, it was no wonder he was a Sanzo, he had been rightfully awarded that honor.

But some of the monks thought Sanzo might've been spiting them. When they would talk loud enough for Goku to hear, indirectly telling him to go away and Sanzo would hear, he would just smirk with his head down. Goku would look to Sanzo, to see what he thought, and Sanzo never acted any differently. He too had once had the monks talk about him in front of him, and told Goku himself he could stay as long as he wished, whether he wanted to be a Buddhist or not. This was unheard of! However, the monks didn't know that Sanzo himself had never once considered himself a Buddhist until his master told him he was naming him as the successor to the Sanzo title. Some of the monks thought Sanzo was just doing this out of spite for them, for the way they had treated him when he had first come.

But other monks saw it a different way.

Other monks remembered the younger Sanzo who had first come to their temple. The young monk with blank, dull eyes. The monk who looked more like he was ready to take his own life than use it to protect and hold a Holy Sutra. The one who couldn't sleep, the one who spent all his time quietly meditating, the one who looked more like a walking corpse than a priest. They remembered that was the first Sanzo who had come to the temple. But now…

Sanzo was alert, awake. He was serious, and took things more seriously. His face could show expressions. His violet eyes shone brightly, especially if he was angry. He seemed so ALIVE. He was a completely different person than the one who had first come. It was actually a wonderfully refreshing change. And many monks knew, in part, it was because of Goku. His face would only soften around him. If he tried to teach Goku, Goku would actually remember it. Chasing after Goku gave him good exercise. Goku smiling at him, so full of trust and loyalty, could make even the angriest Sanzo calmer. (And sometimes, when Sanzo was in a bad mood, the monks would send Goku in first to calm him, using him as a shield in a sense.) He often dragged him away from certain monks, the ones who especially liked young boys, to protect him. He refused to let any of them claim him as an acolyte; Sanzo himself would be the one to train him. He brought out a side of Sanzo that no one could ever guess existed, a bright side that shone just like the sun. Sanzo had been the one to calm Goku's rage, and Goku had been the one to soften Sanzo's heart.

And, those who saw it, remembered a certain time, in the heat of summer, when they stumbled upon the two of them in a room. Both were lying asleep on the floor, the fan on and Sanzo with a glass of water in his hand. While apart, both were curled inwards, almost as if curling towards the other. And both were fast asleep, Sanzo looking so peaceful and at ease, and Goku still with a smile on his face, just happy to be near his guardian.

All the monks who looked in on this could not help but be touched. This was the very image of family love, a cute domestic scene with those two. This sweet innocent picture could not be tainted in any way. And if all the monks could see this, they would all understand the true nature of the relationship between those two.

So when a very hot and cranky Sanzo had demanded that they get air conditioning in the temple, the monks were upset for more than one reason. The main reason was that air conditioning was very expensive. How would they ever come up with the money to pay for it, even if only for a few months a year? They were monks! It wasn't as though they were getting paid!

But when looking past Sanzo, they saw Goku's almost horrified looking face, and knew the reason: there could be no more opportunities like that time, sleeping in the room with him. And Goku looked pretty upset at that thought. And some of the monks who had seen that sight also knew they'd never get a chance to see it again. But regardless of whether it had been seen or not, one thing was clear: both felt that this was a terrible idea, for whatever the reason, it did not matter.

It was the one and only time Goku and the monks ever agreed on anything.

Scribble: I thought this was going to be short?

Me: It was, but I changed my mind! I made it longer! So there! Well, what did everyone think? Worthless flames that don't tell me how to improve suck. Constructive criticism is appreciated. And good reviews are loved! I'm off to work on a Reborn! fic, but I may return to Saiyuki again someday, so until then! Long Live the Sanzo-ikkou!

-titangirl161


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